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A recent article on the American Nurse by Lori Lioce Clinical Associate Professor & Simulation Coordinator at the University of Alabama Huntsville entitled “New Validation for Simulation Education” covers the continued evolution of healthcare simulation, the recent NCSBN landmark research study results, and the INACSL standards — all of which are helping to support the increase of medical simulation in healthcare education. Lori is also a Family Nurse Practitioner, Vice President of operations for INACSL and a Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator. Below is some excerpts of this must-read article:

Technology and improved teaching and learning strategies are changing education as we knew it. A 2013 review conducted by David Cook of more than 1,000 individual studies with more than 50,000 participants revealed that “technology-enhanced simulation is consistently associated with large, statistically significant benefits in the areas of knowledge, skills and behaviors.” And “for direct patient effects, such as major complications, mortality, or length of stay, the benefits are smaller but still significant.” These findings, published by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, underscore what many nursing educators and students have experienced firsthand.

Keys to successful simulation training experiences

Health care simulation is used in a variety of settings for student and employee orientation, physiologic assessment, deliberate practice, on-demand clinical experiences, reflective exploration, competency validation, communication and teamwork development, remediation, and high-stakes testing. The beauty of simulation-enhanced learning is that it uniquely and deliberately allows participants to make mistakes at the bedside in a controlled environment with no risk to a patient. Health care simulation shouldn’t replace all clinical experiences. However, specific and purposeful integration of simulation can be an incredible process to witness. Further, the subsequent debriefing, whether at the bedside or in a formal debriefing room, allows participants and peers to safely discuss competent practice, rehearse peer-to-peer communication, identify and correct errors and explore the implications for patients, apply clinical practice protocols, and examine clinical reasoning with a knowledgeable facilitator. Personally, I enjoy seeing the “light go on” in the face of the participants when they really “get it.” The rapid discussion of how they made the connection from their reading or didactic education to clinical application is the key. They are excited, and it is contagious. That’s when I know we have had a positive experience.

Successful simulation requires planning and practice. A programmatic framework with specific steps is essential to support successful repeatable outcomes. The process may include a theoretical framework, orientation to the simulator, an explanation of the facilitator and participant roles and expectations, and preselection of specific achievable and measurable objectives. Participants should understand this process. The participant should lead and be empowered through pre- and post-briefing to achieve true change in practice through discovery learning.

Often administrators, staff, novice facilitators, course managers, clinicians and even participants may underestimate the preparation needed. In the educational environment, where you may have multiple groups repeating the same simulation, I am an advocate for a simulation expert and facilitator-led “dry run” of all simulations before implementation with participants. The dry run without participants allows the facilitator to see the experience from the participants’ perspective and ensures selection of a pre- and post-simulation process, especially when there are different facilitators within a course for each clinical group. This deliberate planning provides a vital opportunity for selection of learning preparation assignments, didactic coordination, review of and emphasis on objectives, coordination of vital equipment and medications, altering of the scenario, and agreement on a scenario stopping point. Most important, it verifies the presence of all physical and verbal cues that enable the participants to follow the clinical reasoning. Without these, simulation may not be aspirational or improve patient outcomes. Several vital components of a successful simulation learning program are dedicated simulation staff, effective coordination and scheduling, and an experienced debriefer — one who can guide the participants in discovery learning and not steal the “aha” moment. In fact, once a facilitator sees that light come on for the participants, he or she may never want to lecture again.

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National and state regulation

Be aware that rules and regulations are being considered in various states regarding the use of simulation. In fact, in June 2013, the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) completed data collection for a three-year multisite study on the use of simulation in prelicensure programs. The results are being released Aug. 13 at the NCSBN annual meeting in Chicago. I encourage you to periodically check with your state boards for specific updates.

Standards for best practice

With the rapid expansion in the field of health care simulation, standards for best practice have become increasingly important for quality, consistency, outcomes, and improvement of simulation programs and learning strategies.

In 2011, the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INACSL) published the seminal work Standards of Best Practice: Simulation. This document includes seven standards, and each standard includes specific criteria, outcomes and rationales. The standards provide a vital framework for decreasing clinical variability, planning strategically, initiating research and providing faculty development.

Four new standards, identified in 2013, are currently being prepared for publication in 2015 to address simulation design, research, standardized patients and interprofessional education.

Is This the Best Healthcare Simulation Program in the World?

Having been blessed with the opportunity to travel to the world and tour thousands of healthcare simulation programs in dozens of countries, its rare to come across a system dedicated to innovation in every aspect of its operations. Brisbane’s Clinical Skills Development Service, directed by Dylan Campher, is one such program, with a business model [...]

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September 14, 2017

CAE Healthcare Shares SSH President’s Insights for Use of Simulation in Nursing

CAE Healthcare recently shared a piece from Christine Park, M.D., current president of the Society for Simulation in Healthcare, about the role that simulation plays within the nursing profession and in improving patient safety (published in the online edition of Media Planet’s “Future of Health Care News”).

Here are a few excerpts from Dr. Park’s article, with added insights [...]